RELATED ARTICLES

Share this article

Share

Earlier in the speech he also paid tribute to those who helped him along the way, and the things he values most these days.

'Now one may look at me as having great success, which I have in the strictest sense of the word,' said Ferrell, who talked about how he used to dine on spaghetti with mustard he was so poor and moved back home for two years after college.

'And don't get me wrong I love what I do and I feel so fortunate to get to entertain people. But to me my definition of success if my 16-and-a-half year marriage to my beautiful and talented wife, Vivica. My three amazing kids.'

Ferrell then asked his three sons to stand up before announcing their names and ages to the cheering crowd.

He continued on and then, a few minutes later, paused his speech to jokingly scream at the boys to stop hitting one another, drawing laughter from the crowd.

The students seemed delighted to have Ferrell as their speaker, screaming 'Frank the Tank' as he took the podium, a reference to his character in the classic college comedy 'Old School.'

'I would like to say thank you, graduates for that warm welcome,' said Ferrell at the start of his speech.

'I would also like to apologize to all the parents who are sitting there saying, "Will Ferrell? Why Will Ferrell? I hate Will Ferrell. I hate him. I hate his movies. He’s gross. Although he’s much better-looking in person. Has he lost weight?"'

Drama: Ferrell also told the crowd, which included Helen Mirren, he lost the role of Queen Elizabeth in 'The Queen' to the British dame, who won an Oscar (Mirren and Ferrel above)

Distinguished doctor: The 49-year-old was awarded a doctorate in humane letters 27 years after he got his undergraduate degree in sports information from USC

Ferrell revealed that even now he still does not get every role he auditions for, recalling one incident that happened over a decade ago.

'My most painful example was losing the role of Queen Elizabeth in the film "The Queen,"' said Ferrell.

'Apparently it came down to two actors, myself and Helen Mirren. The rest is history.'

Ferrell then turned around and looked at Mirren, who was in attendance also received a doctorate in humane letters, screaming at the esteemed thespian: 'Dame Helen Mirren, you stole my Oscar!'

Ferrell, who called himself one of the four most famous USC alums alongside John Wayne, John Glenn and Rob Kardashian, also informed the audience he would know be branching out into the medical field.

'I have been informed I can now perform minimally-invasive surgery at any time or place even if people don’t want it,' said Ferrell of receiving his doctorate.

'In fact, I am legally obligated to perform minor surgeries at the end of today’s ceremonies or my doctorate degree will be revoked.'

He later added:'The next time I am flying and they ask if there is a doctor on board, I can scream, "I am a doctor, what can I do? Yes, no problem, I can deliver that baby."

'Hopefully it will be on United Airlines, in which case I would be immediately subdued and dragged off the aircraft, which will be recorded by someone and put on YouTube.'

Ferrell told the crowd that he had already informed his family that they must now refer to him as Dr. Ferrell.